Final Fiction story

[Angus]

Angus Macmillan
Essay 2
11/07/2009

Greed can be hidden in plain sight.

“Tell me something,” a man asked. “What is the meaning of life? What
is it like to live a life of squalor, depression, with the
unquestioned vulgarity of not having everything you could ever want?
What is the meaning of life to some one who has nothing,” he paused
for a moment staring in to a glass of whiskey which he caressed with
his hand. “Someone who has less than I may never know the pleasures
that life bestows.”
“What, exactly, are you talking about,” a voice suddenly
interrupts, “Are you talking about me?”
“No, my dear, if I had been talking about you I would have been
less refined,” he said with a bemused grin before he sipped from his
glass. “You are a visual delight, stunning. You will look great on my
arm. Let’s go.”
“Oh, er..,” the second voice begins before being quickly
silenced.
“Hold that thought, because talking doesn’t look good on you and
tonight it’s all about how good you look” he said sharply as he guided
her out of the door of his penthouse apartment, situated on the upper
east side of New York. They were off to a celebrity studded red-
carpet affair sponsored by his company’s charitable arm; he in an all
black Tom Ford suit custom fitted with a white silk scarf draped over
his shoulders a pair of black leather Bertuli shoes that he
accessorized with an understated platinum Rolex and one of the most
beautiful women in the country. This was the standard to which he was
much accustomed.
“You are truly exquisite this evening” John said, as the driver
pulled the Maybach around to pick them up. She blushed as he quickly
checked his text messages while the driver helped her in to the car.
He followed her in, “But I must ask you to be patient, as I have some
business to attend to.”
He moved his focus from her lips to each eye, his charming
features softening his words, she nodded acceptingly with a cautious
restraint afraid to say anything. John reads the first email from his
lobbyist. He smiles at the irony as he heads to an event to celebrate
certain passage of the current environmental bill before Congress
designed to save the climate knowing his lobbyist has just confirmed
the congressmen bought and paid for that will make sure the bill about
to come to a vote that afternoon will fail.
He scans several other emails confirming investments here and
abroad where he has leveraged all of his company’s capital. He takes a
moment, a break from concentration to breathe and look out the window.
He sees a homeless person searching through a garbage can and smiles
at his own prosperity “what is the meaning of life to someone who has
nothing” he muttered under his breath.
“Sorry?” she asked.
“Be quiet, I am working” he snaps. He reviews the latest market
reports for the companies that stand to gain the most when the bill
fails and their polluting businesses see a huge stock rebound to their
recently depressed trading values. His smile grows wider as he
contemplates the investments he has made in each of these companies on
which he has staked his career. Finally, the driver informs them they
are arriving at the destination. As they pull up to the event there is
a melee of paparazzi and excitement that usually would surround the
premier of a blockbuster movie and with it was the organized chaos of
flashes and shouting, mulled only slightly by the Maybach. John puts
his laptop and mobile away and turns to his date gently pushing the
hair out of her whitened face and molding his hand to her cheek. He
looked into her eyes with a confident gaze and she smiled warming to
the sudden sense of safety that he was giving her. He kissed her
tenderly on the lips and returned to his gaze as the doorman began to
open the door “wait five seconds and get out of the opposite side”
“But…”
John halted her by giving a reassuring look as he stepped out of
the car and into a frenzy of tumultuous action. With an aura of
perfect confidence, he greeted the chaos and nodded in the direction
of Bono and Oprah who were currently on the red carpet talking to the
press while surrounded by their entourages. John made his way across
the red carpet with consummate ease, his date as his shadow, her
immense beauty hardly even noticed. All eyes were on John, the man of
the hour and he controlled the paparazzi as he controlled his
business, ruthlessly. Asked what was the secret to his success he
replied, “not to give my secrets away and certainly not to give them
away for free.” When he was ready, he extended his arm and immediately
she was there as the paparazzi went crazy vying for the money shot.
Together for the rest of the entrance they walked into the auditorium
where they were greeted by a personal concierge who showed them to
their seats at the Dias. They were sitting with some of the most
influential celebrities and politicians in the country. John once
again glanced down at his notes for the speech he was about to give
that thanked those assembled for honoring him with the organizations
highest award while also humbly reiterating his commitment to their
environmental cause. John’s well practiced look of polite and intense
interest served him well as he continued checking his texts for
updates on his market positions, while others took turns speaking to
the crowd about the man of the hour. Finally, after receiving many
accolades he tore himself away from his messages to hear former Vice
President and Nobel Prize winner Al Gore introduce John to the adoring
crowd.
As John rose to give his acceptance speech an electric thrill
coursed through him as he heard his name called and the audience erupt
with thunderous cheers and applause. As he made his way to the podium,
a standing ovation began causing him to succumb to a moment of
involuntary introspection, as he took in the crowd and their emotional
outpouring. Unwavering in his projected appearance of graciousness, he
masked an intolerable rush of guilt for his current dealings,
something which had never affected him before. Though he did not let
it show, his stomach was burning and his mind racing. Every one of
those pending deals undermined everything the organization stood for
and the environmental goals he was paying lip service to in the speech
he was about to give. He looked up from his notes with his heart in
his mouth and surreptitiously took one last look at a text that had
just appeared on his screen: “We just made 200 million given all our
positions and passage of the bill.” To John, those words had the
calming effect he needed as he chuckled to himself and thought of that
line uttered by Michael Douglas in Wall Street, “Greed is Good” and
began his speech.